401K account - Asset account

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pstarfam
pstarfam Member ✭✭
edited March 2022 in Investing (Mac)
I have a manually updated (can't connect) 401K account with manual transactions going back 10+ years. Not sure how it happened, but it's "type" is Asset. So it doesn't show up in my "Investing, Retirement" list. It seems like it is being categorized as a house, or car or something.

I have created a new 401k manual account that does show up in the Investing- Retirement" list and totals. But it has a starting balance of today...

Is there a way to change the old Asset account to 401k? I don't see that option when I edit the account.

If not is there a way to merge accounts?

Is there a way to copy all of the transactions from old to new?

Other suggestions?

Thanks

Answers

  • RickO
    RickO SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta
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    QMac doesn't allow you to change an existing Asset account to an Investing type account. However, you can drag and drop all the transactions from the Asset account to your new 401k account in the sidebar. They will become transactions of type Payment/Deposit in the 401k account. 

    You will end up with the total of these transactions being reflected as a cash balance in the 401k. If the actual 401k holdings are in securities, you will need to enter Buy transactions to convert the cash into security holdings. That is, if you care to have the account reflect these holdings. Being it is a retirement account, you probably don't need to worry about getting the cost basis right.

    It's a bit strange that you went all this time with the 401k as an Asset account given that you could not enter any type of transaction other than a cash in/out transaction. 
    Quicken Mac Subscription; Quicken Mac user since the early 90s
  • pstarfam
    pstarfam Member ✭✭
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    Thanks for the quick response! In/out... The 401lk is thru my former employer. I have chosen a target fund, but it does not have a symbol or ticker name to track automatically. So once a month or so I update it with current value. That's what I want to preserve in the new account. Regarding that I do I update current value in a 401K manual acct? Or is there a better "type" to use?
  • RickO
    RickO SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta
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    Normally with a 401k that holds a single fund that is not listed, you would enter Buy transactions as shares are purchase through payroll deductions and/or employer contributions. You would manually update the share price on the fund's page in Quicken to keep the total value correct.

    That said, if you drag and drop all the transactions from the old to the new account, you could continue doing just as you have: entering changes in value as payment/deposit transactions that decrease/increase the cash value shown in the account.

    Another option would be to move all your existing cash transactions to the new account, but then make a single Buy transaction to move all that cash value to a new security (Fund) that you create in Quicken. This would preserve your history of account value changes while more accurately reflecting what's really happening on going forward. In the future, you would enter deposit transactions that reflect contributions to the account (with categories reflecting your or employer contributions) and Buy transactions to reflect these contributions being converted into the Fund. You would need to have access to the fund's share price and the number of shares currently in your account. Hopefully you have that.

    If you need more detailed instructions on accomplishing the above, let us know.
    Quicken Mac Subscription; Quicken Mac user since the early 90s
  • pstarfam
    pstarfam Member ✭✭
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    I'm retired so I can't add any funds, so it will be sells or updating current value.
  • RickO
    RickO SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta
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    Got it. Since you don't have any need to categorize incoming funds, either way is probably fine.
    Quicken Mac Subscription; Quicken Mac user since the early 90s
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